Updated 24 Jan 2012
This page shows images obtained with my Orion Parsec 8300C imager (this is the single shot color version of this camera). I use this camera and also an Orion StarShoot Pro Deep Space CCD Color Imager (purchased in 2008) to do my imaging. The Starshoot is a great imager, a true workhorse, and I have not likely reached the limits of that unit. However the Parsec offers advantages over the Starshoot in several areas, but in the end the imagers complement each other. My Starshoot page is here: Joe's Orion StarShoot Pro Deep Space CCD Color Imager Page.
I seriously considered getting the monochrome version of the Parsec, however due to my limited free time (and few clear nights) I opted for the color version (even though the monochrome version with tri-color filters would ultimately produce higher quality color images).
The Parsec camera requires Maxim DL software to control and operate it. The camera comes with a trial version of Maxim DL, however I already had the full version of Maxim DL so I never used the trial software. All images below are acquired and processed using maxim DL and post processing is done in Photoshop.
My Parsec arrived in early September 2011, but as is typical the weather was horrible and I did not get a chance to try it out until about a week later. I'm still learning this camera but thus far have managed to get some decent images. This camera is 8.3MP and can generate images that will not fit on a computer monitor in their entirety, therefore I have included images at several resolutions for most shots.
This is one my first imaging sessions using the Parsec.
M27 This is a 52 minute (13x240) exposure of Dumbell Nebula (M27) in Vulpecula. This image is at the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped substantially. Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Tonight I managed to get several images...
M2 This is a 44 minute (11x240) exposure of the globular cluster M2 in Aquarius. This image is at the full resolution of the camera but it is cropped significantly. Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
M29 This is a 20 minute (5x240) exposure of open cluster M29 in Cygnus. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped somewhat. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
NGC 457 This is a 3 hour (45x240) exposure of open cluster NGC 457 in Cassiopeia. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped somewhat. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Tonight I managed to get several more images including what is probably my best M31 image so far...
NGC 6866 This is a one hour (15x240) exposure of the open cluster NGC 6866 in Cygnus. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped somewhat. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
NGC 7209 This is a one hour (15x240) exposure of the open cluster NGC 7209 in Lacerta. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped somewhat. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
M31 This is a 68 minute (17x240) exposure of the Andromeda Galaxy, probably my best image of it to date. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped somewhat. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Got one image tonight...
NGC 663 This is a 112 minute (28x240) exposure of the open cluster NGC 663 in Cassiopeia. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. Also visible is cluster NGC 654 (towards the left edge of the image) and NGC 659 (towards the right side of the image). The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Got two images tonight, and probably my best M45 image to date...
NGC 7789 This is a 124 minute (31x240) exposure of the open cluster NGC 7789 in Cassiopeia. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
The Pleiades This is a 152 minute (38x240) exposure of the Pleiades. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Got two more images tonight and what is probably my best M33 image to date...
NGC 7331 This is a 56 minute (14x240) exposure of the galaxy NGC 7331 in Pegasus. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . A closer look at this image (especially the full resolution version) shows numerous other galaxies, including the Stephan's Quintet group (at about 2 o'clock from NGC 7331). Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
M33 This is a 156 minute (39x240) exposure of the M33 in Triangulum. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Got two more images tonight.
Double Cluster This is a 28 minute (7x240) exposure of the famous Double Cluster in Perseus. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . An alternate version of the image (processed to show diffraction spikes on some stars) is here . I am very pleased with these images, especially since the exposure was not even 1/2 hour total! Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Orion Nebula This is a 188 minute (47x240) exposure of the Orion Nebula (M42). This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . This is my best image of M42 to date. Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Managed to get 3 images tonight despite a very fat gibbous Moon in the evening sky.
M39 This is a 44 minute (11x240) exposure of the open cluster M39 in Cygnus. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
NGC 133 and 146 This is a 276 minute (69x240) exposure of the open clusters NGC 133 and NGC 146 in Cassiopeia. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The bright star in the image is Kappa Cas (magnitude 4.2). NGC 146 is at about 4 o'clock from this star and NGC 133 is to the right of the star. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Crab Nebula This is a 116 minute (29x240) exposure of the Crab Nebula (M1) in Taurus. This image is at the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped significantly. Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Managed to get 3 images tonight despite a slightly less than quarter Moon in the evening sky.
NGC 185 This is a 100 minute (25x240) exposure of the galaxy NGC 185 in Cassiopeia. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. Some structure can be seen at the center of the galaxy (this is one of the outlying companion galaxies to M31). The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
M81 and M82 This is a 44 minute (11x240) exposure of the galaxies M81 and M82 in Ursa Major. This image is at one half the full resolution of the camera and it is cropped slightly. The full resolution version of the image is available here . Taken with a Vixen 102ED refractor (665mm focal length). An Astro-Tech field flattener is also in the optical path. Guiding was done using an Orion autoguider on a Celestron 14 scope. Processed in Maxim DL and PhotoShop. [click on the small image to get the full size image]
Use your browser's "back" button, or use links below if you arrived here via some other path:
This page is part of the site Amateur Astronomer's Notebook.
The Joe Roberts Home Page: www.RocketRoberts.com/joe.htm.
E-mail to Joe
Roberts
Images and HTML text © Copyright 2011, 2102 by Joe Roberts. Please request permission to use
photos for purposes other than "personal use".